High Staff Turnover - IELTS Listening Answers & Explanations
From Cambridge IELTS 17 Academic Listening Test 4 · Part 2 · Questions 11–20
Audio
Questions
Questions 11–14 Multiple Choice (One Answer)
Choose the correct letter, A, B or C.
Questions 15–20 Matching
Which way of reducing staff turnover was used in each of the following hotels?
Write the correct letter, A, B or C, next to Questions.
Ways of reducing staff turnover
A improving relationships and teamwork
B offering incentives and financial benefits
C providing career opportunities
Hotels
Answers & Explanations Summary
| # | Answer | Evidence | Explanation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Q11 | A | but what they don’t realise is that it’s the lack of training in many hotel jobs which is a huge factor. | Excerpt/Transcript Explanation: The transcript is saying that many employees in hotels leave their jobs because they do not receive enough training. Answer Explanation: The answer given is 'A', which refers to 'a lack of training.' Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is 'A' because the excerpt specifically mentions that the lack of training in many hotel jobs is a significant reason why staff often leave. This directly supports why option 'A' is the correct choice. |
| Q12 | A | Well, having to recruit new staff all the time can be very time-consuming, and managers may have to cover some duties while waiting for new staff to arrive. | Excerpt/Transcript Explanation: The transcript talks about how it takes a lot of time to find and hire new staff. Managers might have to do extra work while waiting for new employees to start. Answer Explanation: The answer refers to managers having to do more work because of high staff turnover. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is 'an increased workload' because the excerpt mentions that managers have to cover some duties while waiting for new staff, indicating their workload increases due to high staff turnover. |
| Q13 | A | When organising shifts, for example, make sure you never give certain staff preferential treatment. All staff should be given some choice about when they work, and everyone should have to work some evening and weekend shifts. | Excerpt/Transcript Explanation: The transcript is saying that when creating work schedules, it's important to be fair and not show special treatment to specific employees. All employees should be able to have some say in their work hours, including working evenings and weekends. Answer Explanation: The answer means that managers should not make the mistake of treating staff differently or unfairly. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is 'A' because the excerpt emphasizes the importance of not giving certain employees preferential treatment and highlights the need for all staff to be treated equally when it comes to work scheduling decisions. |
| Q14 | C | Not only did the level of complaints fall, but they also noticed a significant increase in the amount each customer spent during their stay. | Excerpt/Transcript Explanation: The transcript says that after Dunwich Hotel improved staff retention rates, they received fewer complaints from customers. Additionally, each customer started spending more money during their stay. Answer Explanation: The answer indicates that after improving staff retention rates, Dunwich Hotel experienced an increase in spending per customer. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is 'C' because it matches the information in the excerpt where it states that there was a significant increase in the amount each customer spent during their stay after the improvement in staff retention rates. |
| Q15 | A | They weren’t made to feel they were partners who were contributing to the success of the business as a whole. This situation has changed. Junior staff at all levels are regularly invited to meetings where their ideas are welcomed. | Excerpt/Transcript Explanation: The transcript talks about how the junior staff at the Sun Club were not previously involved in decision-making and were not valued as valuable contributors. It mentions that now, the junior staff are included in meetings where their ideas are appreciated. Answer Explanation: The answer 'A' means that the Sun Club used the method of improving relationships and teamwork to reduce staff turnover. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is 'A' because the excerpt emphasizes how the staff members were previously not treated as partners but now, they are included in meetings and encouraged to share their ideas. This change indicates a shift towards improving relationships and teamwork within the hotel in order to reduce staff turnover. |
| Q16 | C | Their first step was to introduce a scheme for recognising talent amongst their employees. | Excerpt/Transcript Explanation: The transcript talks about the hotel implementing a program to identify talented employees among their staff. Answer Explanation: The answer indicates that the way of reducing staff turnover used in The Portland hotel was by providing career opportunities. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is C (providing career opportunities) because the excerpt mentions introducing a scheme to recognize talent within the employees, which aligns with offering career opportunities for growth and development. |
| Q17 | B | As a reward, they’re sent on an all-expenses-paid trip abroad every year. | Excerpt/Transcript Explanation: The transcript indicates that employees are given a fully paid vacation abroad as a reward. Answer Explanation: The answer choice 'B' means offering incentives and financial benefits. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is 'B' because sending employees on a fully paid trip abroad is a form of offering incentives and financial benefits, which can help reduce staff turnover by motivating and rewarding employees. |
| Q18 | C | In order to encourage them to see that working in a hotel could be worthwhile and rewarding, with good prospects, they introduced a management programme. | Excerpt/Transcript Explanation: The transcript talks about how the hotel introduced a management programme to help employees see that working at the hotel can lead to good career opportunities and prospects. Answer Explanation: The answer means that Pentlow Hotels used providing career opportunities as a way to reduce staff turnover. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is 'C' because the excerpt mentions that the hotel introduced a management programme to show employees the potential for a rewarding career and good prospects. This aligns with the idea of providing career opportunities as a way to reduce staff turnover. |
| Q19 | B | To make life easier for staff, many of whom had childcare responsibilities, the hotel began issuing vouchers to help cover the cost of childcare. | Excerpt/Transcript Explanation: The transcript describes how the hotel issued vouchers to help cover the cost of childcare for staff members who have childcare responsibilities. Answer Explanation: The answer 'B' means that the hotel is providing incentives and financial benefits to reduce staff turnover. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is 'B' because by offering vouchers to help with childcare costs, the hotel is providing a financial benefit to its staff, which falls under the category of offering incentives and financial benefits to reduce staff turnover. |
| Q20 | A | Since she joined the company, she has made a huge effort to achieve this by creating a co-operative and supportive environment. For her, the staff are part of a large family where everyone is valued. | Excerpt/Transcript Explanation: The transcript describes how the person in charge has made a big effort to create a positive and supportive environment where everyone feels like they are part of a large family and are important. Answer Explanation: The answer means that the Amesbury hotel used the method of improving relationships and teamwork to reduce staff turnover. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is 'A' (improving relationships and teamwork) because the excerpt emphasizes how the leader focused on creating a cooperative and supportive atmosphere within the team to make everyone feel valued, which aligns with the concept of improving relationships to reduce staff turnover. |
Transcript
As many of you here today have worked in the hotel industry for some time, I’m sure you have experienced the problem of high staff turnover in your hotels. Every hotel relies on having loyal and experienced members of staff who make sure that everything runs smoothly. If staff are constantly changing, it can make life difficult for everyone. But why do staff leave frequently in many hotels? Of course, many hotel jobs, such as cleaning, are low-skilled and are not well-paid. A lot of managers think it’s this and the long hours that are the main causes of high staff turnover – but what they don’t realise is that it’s the lack of training in many hotel jobs which is a huge factor.
So, what kind of problems does a high turnover of staff cause? Well, having to recruit new staff all the time can be very time-consuming, and managers may have to cover some duties while waiting for new staff to arrive. This means they don’t have time to think about less immediate problems such as how to improve their service. When staff leave, it can also severely affect the colleagues they leave behind. It has a negative effect on remaining staff, who may start to feel that they too should be thinking about leaving.
So, what can be done to change this situation? Firstly, managers should stop making basic errors which leave their staff feeling upset and resentful. When organising shifts, for example, make sure you never give certain staff preferential treatment. All staff should be given some choice about when they work, and everyone should have to work some evening and weekend shifts. If you treat staff fairly, they’ll be more likely to step in and help when extra staff are needed.
Keeping staff happy has other tangible benefits for the business. Take the Dunwich Hotel as an example. It had been experiencing a problem with staff complaints and in order to deal with this, invested in staff training and improved staff conditions. Not only did the level of complaints fall, but they also noticed a significant increase in the amount each customer spent during their stay. They have now introduced a customer loyalty scheme which is going really well.
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Now I’d like to look at some ways you can reduce staff turnover in your hotels, and I’ll do this by giving some examples of hotels where I’ve done some training recently.
The Sun Club received feedback which showed that staff thought managers didn’t value their opinions. They weren’t made to feel they were partners who were contributing to the success of the business as a whole. This situation has changed. Junior staff at all levels are regularly invited to meetings where their ideas are welcomed.
A year ago, The Portland recognised the need to invest in staff retention. Their first step was to introduce a scheme for recognising talent amongst their employees. The hope is that organising training for individuals with management potential will encourage them to stay with the business.
At Bluewater, managers decided to recognise 50 high achievers from across the company’s huge hotel chain. As a reward, they’re sent on an all-expenses-paid trip abroad every year. Fun is an important element in the trips, but there’s also the opportunity to learn something useful. This year’s trip included a visit to a brewery, where staff learned about the new beer that would be served in the hotel.
Pentlow Hotels identified that retention of junior reception staff was an issue. In order to encourage them to see that working in a hotel could be worthwhile and rewarding, with good prospects, they introduced a management programme. These staff were given additional responsibilities and the chance to work in various roles in the hotel.
Green Planet wanted to be seen as a caring employer. To make life easier for staff, many of whom had childcare responsibilities, the hotel began issuing vouchers to help cover the cost of childcare.
Louise Marsh at The Amesbury has one of the best staff retention rates in the business. Since she joined the company, she has made a huge effort to achieve this by creating a co-operative and supportive environment. For her, the staff are part of a large family where everyone is valued.
OK, now I’d like to …